Dispatches from the 10th Crusade

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Pray for the persecuted church

In particular, Christians, please pray for Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who may (indeed, it appears probably will) be executed for being a Christian under Iranian apostasy laws.

It appears that Pastor Nadarkhani never even practiced Islam (though this shouldn't matter). Because his ancestors were Muslim, he is considered Muslim and, as I remarked elsewhere, once a Muslim government regards you as Muslim, you can check out any time you like, but you just can't leave.

It is our responsibility as Christians to pray earnestly for Pastor Nadarkhani's release or, if that is not the Lord's will, for strength and a sense of the presence of God through his martyrdom and God's mighty use of his death.

May God give us all strength to bear any trial for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Comments (3)

The case has taken a still-more-loathsome twist in recent days. Iran's state-run media organs are now declaring that he is under the sentence of death not for any religious crime, but rather for rape and extortion.

As no hint of this appears in any of the numerous documents, accusations and rulings released by the prosecution in his case prior to now, it does not seem to be particularly likely that this is true. That is, it may in fact be true that he will "officially" be executed for rape and extortion, but it is highly doubtful that any such crimes took place.

This is part of the wider jihad being waged against the Church in the Middle East and South Asia. A few months ago the Taliban beheaded a man for converting to Christianity and refusing to recant. In Somalia many Christian converts have been murdered by Muslim militants seeking to enforce shariah law. Churches in Iraq and Egypt are routinely bombed, burned, and ransacked, with priests and bishops being kidnapped and murdered. Even in "moderate" Turkey priests and bishops are targeted for assassination by devout Muslims "offended" by the latest manufactured outrage. In Pakistan, a Christian woman, Asia Bibi, awaits a death sentence for the "blasphemy" of refusing to renounce Christ.

My heart and prayers are with Yousef Nadarkhani. I pray that Christ strengthens him in his faith and patience and that this tribulation is lifted from him. He can truly say, with St. Paul, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."

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